IPad for Music production

In this iOS Roundup, we look at five impressive iPad music apps for music production from Arturia, Akai, LIVID, Blamsoft, and Audreio.

Arturia iSpark | Moble Beat Artillery

iSpark is an all-inclusive beat-making suite that includes a large variety of drum kits based on renowned drum machines and individual instruments that produce warm analog synth textures and melodic elements. iSpark allows you to play drum patterns in real time, and tweak sounds on-the-fly with ease. It’s optimized and performance-oriented layout gives you direct access to an extended range of sound shaping parameters, sonic effects, and a flexible 64-step sequencer. 640 instruments are driven by a powerful sound engine that includes TAE® analog synthesis, physical modeling, and multi-layered samples. In addition, iSpark is compatible with the existing Spark environment, SparkLE controller, and Ableton Link. Read more at Arturia

Akai iMPC Pro | Music Production Controller

iMPC Pro is a 64-track music production powerhouse for your iPad. With built-in sampling functionality, a sound library, effects, and performance-driven features, iMPC Pro brings the functionality of Akai Professional’s coveted Music Production Center to your iPad. Developed in partnership with Retronyms, the developers of the original iMPC, iMPC Pro comes with numerous enhancements for creating when inspiration strikes. It combines multiple sampling methods, core MPC features, a custom sample library from Richard Devine, and an intuitive gestural editor to create an advanced music sampling and creation platform for iOS. Read more at Akai

Blamsoft Viking Synth | Moog Voyager Emulation

Viking Synth is an authentic emulation of the classic Moog Voyager, a powerful monophonic analog synthesizer. It has three continuously variable wave oscillators, two ladder filters with a Dual Lowpass or Highpass/Lowpass configuration, a multi-wave LFO, and two modulation busses. Viking Synth uses state of the art DSP technology to accurately reproduce the sound of the hardware version. The same algorithms are found in the popular Rack Extension for Propellerhead Reason. Viking Synth is also an Audio Unit Extension Instrument that works as a plugin inside host apps. Read more at Blamsoft

LIVID Minim | Mobile MIDI Controller

Minim is a wireless, pocket-sized instrument with tactile control designed for mobile music making. Minim’s expressive pads, 3D motion control, and touch sensitive technology allows you to play intuitively with your favorite music creation apps. Minim is not limited to built-in sounds, but instead controls audio running on your iOS or OS X device. Each control can make thousands of sounds by connecting Minim to the software on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Minim features eight ultra-expressive pads, 15 buttons, one touch fader, wireless capabilities, LED feedback, a long-lasting lithium ion battery. Read more at LIVID Instruments

Audreio | Audio Streaming Solution

Audreio is a handy app used for connecting your music making devices over a local network or remotely, anywhere in the world. Stream and record full bandwidth audio between iOS devices or iOS and desktop DAWs. Audreio streams lossless 16-bit audio over local networks and remotely, and 32-bit when connected via cable. Avoid the hassle of bouncing, transferring, and waiting for feedback with instant, live mix monitoring from anywhere in the world. The app also supports AAX/VST/AU plugins and is MIDI capable allowing you to use Audreio as an iOS instrument just like a synth plugin in your DAW. Read more at Audreio

Become ﬂuent in the language of sound design and synthesis with this comprehensive program. This six-level Sound Design program uses Native Instruments’ Komplete as a platform for learning synthesis and sampling techniques. Starting with an introduction to the properties of sound, this comprehensive series of courses covers the major techniques used for contemporary sound design.